The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Greetings, MechWarriors!

Well, FASA promised a role-playing system this time around, and not just a Battletech pilot generator like the first two editions of MechWarrior, and boy, did they succeed!

MW3rd presents a new task resolution system (Using D10... a definite departure) and event-based character generation with a life path system similar to Mekton or Traveller, but adds their own touch by flavoring the life path with the Affiliation (That is to say, what Nation or Great House or Clan) allowing some characters options others do not have. There are national predispositions, but anyone can really create any kind of character they want from any home nation.

Remember the dearth of skills in MW1Ed. and MW2Ed? Well, worry no more. The characters I've created have 20-30 skills, sometimes more by the time they're ready to play. Expect compotent characters with a wide range of abilities. MechWarriors? Sure. But a player has the freedom to become a merchant, police officer, archaeologist, Yakuza operative, or absolutely anything else the player wants. The system allows for great character-gen opportunities. This, like Traveller, will be a system people will sit down for Character Gen for just because it's fun in and of itself.

The combat system is clean, and cinematic. The Edge point mechanic allows a character to burn luck in the same vein as Force points in Star Wars, and the like. Damage calculation can be a bit fuzzy at first, but becomes clearer with practice. The hit location chart is printed on the character sheet, and FASA has compiled all the neccessary charts into a section in the back of the book for easy copying.

The background and history section brings the reader up to date on par with the most recently released novels (The Capellan Solution and Twilight of the Clans series) and fills in a lot of the gaps in histories since the MW2nd Ed manual.

Now for my one and only gripe. Aside from FASA's insistance that the 'Missing 36' 'Mechs are still legal and valid for play, NONE of the 'Mech assignment tables in the book include any of these classic designs. It is hard to believe that numerous and ubiquitous designs such as the Locust and Wasp are now so rare as not to appear on the random tables, and the Valkyrie, once the mainstay light Mech of the Federated Suns, has been supplanted by the Javelin in the 'sweet spot' (7 on 2D6) of the assignment table. The record sheets are still printed, so IMHO, the Mechs should appear on the availability charts.

Other than that minor gripe, there's enough meat between these pages to spark a GM's imagination in a hundred directions. In or out of their Mechs, or discluding Mechs altogether, the BattleTech universe just got more accessible, and exciting. I highly recommend MW 3rd Edition to any Mecha/Anime/Sci-Fi gamer as a good example of a deep, fascinating campaign background with a bang-up set of rules to go along with them.

Style: 4 (Classy and well done)
Substance: 4 (Meaty)

MechWarrior Third Edition
Author: Bryan Nystul Category: game Company/Publisher: FASA Line: BattleTech/MechWarrior Cost: 25.00 Page count: 224 ISBN: 1-55560-386-6 SKU: 1715 Capsule Review by Lord Breetai on 08/16/99. Genre tags: Science_fiction Far_Future Space Anime	Greetings, MechWarriors! Well, FASA promised a role-playing system this time around, and not just a Battletech pilot generator like the first two editions of MechWarrior, and boy, did they succeed! MW3rd presents a new task resolution system (Using D10... a definite departure) and event-based character generation with a life path system similar to Mekton or Traveller, but adds their own touch by flavoring the life path with the Affiliation (That is to say, what Nation or Great House or Clan) allowing some characters options others do not have. There are national predispositions, but anyone can really create any kind of character they want from any home nation. Remember the dearth of skills in MW1Ed. and MW2Ed? Well, worry no more. The characters I've created have 20-30 skills, sometimes more by the time they're ready to play. Expect compotent characters with a wide range of abilities. MechWarriors? Sure. But a player has the freedom to become a merchant, police officer, archaeologist, Yakuza operative, or absolutely anything else the player wants. The system allows for great character-gen opportunities. This, like Traveller, will be a system people will sit down for Character Gen for just because it's fun in and of itself. The combat system is clean, and cinematic. The Edge point mechanic allows a character to burn luck in the same vein as Force points in Star Wars, and the like. Damage calculation can be a bit fuzzy at first, but becomes clearer with practice. The hit location chart is printed on the character sheet, and FASA has compiled all the neccessary charts into a section in the back of the book for easy copying. The background and history section brings the reader up to date on par with the most recently released novels (The Capellan Solution and Twilight of the Clans series) and fills in a lot of the gaps in histories since the MW2nd Ed manual. Now for my one and only gripe. Aside from FASA's insistance that the 'Missing 36' 'Mechs are still legal and valid for play, NONE of the 'Mech assignment tables in the book include any of these classic designs. It is hard to believe that numerous and ubiquitous designs such as the Locust and Wasp are now so rare as not to appear on the random tables, and the Valkyrie, once the mainstay light Mech of the Federated Suns, has been supplanted by the Javelin in the 'sweet spot' (7 on 2D6) of the assignment table. The record sheets are still printed, so IMHO, the Mechs should appear on the availability charts. Other than that minor gripe, there's enough meat between these pages to spark a GM's imagination in a hundred directions. In or out of their Mechs, or discluding Mechs altogether, the BattleTech universe just got more accessible, and exciting. I highly recommend MW 3rd Edition to any Mecha/Anime/Sci-Fi gamer as a good example of a deep, fascinating campaign background with a bang-up set of rules to go along with them. Style: 4 (Classy and well done) Substance: 4 (Meaty)

MechWarrior Third Edition